Guilt Beckons the Witch
by Anastasia Serya
Summary: What if Sayaka had used her wish to better herself instead of using it on Kyousuke? Sayaka Miki is deeply in love with her childhood friend Kyousuke Kamijou, and has always wanted to be with him but has never had the courage to confess to him. One day she meets a creature named Kyubey, and her life changes forever. Set one of timelines in the former universe.
1. Chapter 1 - Sunny Day in Mitakihara

Guilt Beckons the Witch

It's you that I love but it's her you adore

Chapter 1: An Ordinary Day

The sun shone through the trees as a short haired girl raced down the limestone path. She wasn't in a hurry – no , she was actually early. School didn't start for another half hour, but Sayaka wanted to get to her friends as soon as possible.

Spotting a green haired girl up ahead, Sayaka started waving her. "Hitomi!" she called out as she continued running.

Hitomi Shizuki, who had been reading through her Science textbook, turned to face her friend and greeted her with a smile. "Good morning Sayaka-san".

"I see Madoka isn't here yet" Sayaka remarked.

Hitomi shook her head. "It's still quite early though, I don't expect her to get here until half eight. Why are you here so early, Sayaka-san?" She asked.

Sayaka giggled. "I skipped breakfast".

"You shouldn't skip breakfast! Isn't it supposed to be the most important meal of the day?"

"Who says that?"

"Experts"

"And who are these experts?" Sayaka prompted.

Hitomi sighed. "Scientists, Sayaka, scientists!".

"I'll take it then".

The two girls chatted about random topics but Madoka still hadn't show took her phone out of her bag and pressed the centre button. The screen came to life and displayed a picture of her, Madoka and Hitomi on the lockscreen. The time was 8:14.

"Jeez, if Madoka doesn't hurry up we're gonna be late".

Hitomi's heart rate started to increase rapidly. As the daughter of a rich corporate businessman, she was expected to excel in her classes, be kind to everyone she meets and act like a lady at all times. She had not been late once in her time at Mitakihara Junior High, and she wasn't about to break her perfect record. "Well, call her! We have to find out what's keeping her!".

Sayaka began to look through the numbers on her phone before, like a miracle, Madoka's voice rang out. "Good morning!" Madoka said as she rushed towards them.

"Good morning, Madoka-san" Hitomi smiled.

Sayaka pretended to be angry and scowled at Madoka. "You're late, missy!".

"I'm sorry guys – It was a pain to get Mum out of bed this morning!" Madoka panted, still trying to catch her breath.

Sayaka then noticed the red ribbons tied in Madoka's hair. "Oh, cute ribbons!".

Madoka blushed and fiddled with her hair. "Really? Y-you don't think they're a bit to flashy?".

"I think they look very nice Madoka-san".

The trio began their walk to school, unbeknownst to what was waiting for them that morning in homeroom.

Classes had started, and their teacher, Kazuko Saotome was going on a rant about her ex-boyfriend. Sayaka wasn't really listening – she had heard a thousand of her teachers rants. For some reason, relationships just never worked out for her.

Instead, she was thinking of another boy, by the name of Kyousuke Kamijou. She wanted to go to the mall later that day and buy him a new CD, knowing how much he loved music. Since he was in the hospital, he was grateful for Sayaka's company, as no-one else would visit him apart from his family.

"And you young boys, make sure you don't grow up and become someone who nags about how their eggs are cooked!". Saotome huffed before changing the subject. "Also, I'd like to introduce our new transfer student!".

"Seriously? She left that until last?!" Sayaka muttered.

Saotome turned towards the door and nodded her head. "Please come in, Akemi-san".

In stepped a raven haired beauty, with a face as cold as ice. The class gasped at her radiant beauty. Immediately, there were small conversations between the students about how elegant and mature she looked.

The beautiful girl stopped in front of the digital blackboard, and in the most emotionless voice possible, started her introduction. "My name is Homura Akemi. Nice to meet you all". She picked up on of the markers sitting on the blackboard tray and wrote her name before swiftly bowing.

"Akemi-san, you're seat is up the front next to Suzuki-san" Saotome explained. Homura thanked the teacher and proceeded towards her seat, but before sitting down she stared at Madoka, glaring at her.

The bell rang to signify the end of homeroom, and Saotome left the room. Several students took the opportunity to question Homura.

"Akemi-san, where did you go to school before?"

"A Christian school in Kyoto"

"Were you in any clubs? How about sport teams?"

" I was never in any"

"You're hair is so soft, what shampoo do you use?"

Madoka, Hitomi and Sayaka were gathered at a desk a few metres away from the crowd. "Akemi-san has a sort of mysterious aura around her" Hitomi commented.

"Hey, Madoka, do you know her? She was staring at you earlier" Sayaka asked her friend. Madoka shook her head. "Technically no, but-"

"I'm sorry, I'm not feeling very well". Homura began to stand up. "Oh, do you need help, Akemi-san?" a blonde girl asked.

"I'll manage, thank you". Homura walked over to Sayaka and her friends. "Madoka Kaname, you are the health representative for this class, are you not?".

"Well…yes" Madoka stammered.

"Would you please take me to the nurses office?"

Madoka slowly nodded, before leaving her seat. "I'm sorry guys, I'll explain it later". She faced Homura. "This way please". Both girls walked out the door.

Sayaka's mind was in overdrive. _What did she mean by "Technically no"? How can you technically not meet someone?_

"Sayaka-san?"

Sayaka's thoughts were interrupted by Hitomi tapping on her shoulder. Bewildered, she turned towards her friend. "What is it Hitomi?"

"Don't you think Akemi-san is a bit odd? She seemed a bit too confident in her opening speech"

Sayaka blinked. _Hitomi's caught on it too_. "I know what you mean. She might just be a confident person. What I find odd is that she was staring at Madoka. I have some odd feeling they've met before".

"Then why won't Madoka-san tell us?"

Sayaka looked around the room before lowering her voice to a whisper. "Look, I'd rather not say anything about it without Madoka here. Besides, I don't want anyone listening in on this conversation. We'll talk at the mall after school".

The math teacher, Taniguchi, entered the room and ordered the students to rise and bow. The class obeyed, and the lesson progressed.

Later on, the trio were walking towards the Crystal Plaza to talk about the strange Homura Akemi and to pick up the CD. They were just chatting about random topics when Sayaka noticed a cat like creature crossing the road towards her. The lights were red and the cars started to move forwards towards it.

Hitomi noticed the cat as well."What is that cat doing? It'll be run over if it doesn't hurry!"

Without thinking, Sayaka ran into the road. She could hear her friends crying out her name, but she knew what she had to do. She scooped up the cat in her arms and attempted to get to the other side of the road. As the truck in front of her screeched to a halt, Sayaka tripped over, flinging the cat safely to the other side of the road. The truck was mere seconds away from hitting her.

Sayaka braced herself for an impact but luckily, the truck managed to slow down enough so that she wasn't hit bad. The force was still enough to knock her down to the ground.

The driver got out of his vehicle and checked to see if he had run over the girl. "Are you hurt anywhere? Are you ok? Say something miss!".

Sayaka began to stand up and brush herself off. "I'm fine….thank you though. The fall wasn't that bad, it looked a lot worse than it actually was….". She knelt down to pick up her bag.

"We should still get you checked out at the hospital. Are you sure your fine?".

"It's only a few scratches, and honestly it was my fault. I had to save the cat…..thank you though, kind sir". Sayaka slowly walked over to the bed of flowers the cat landed in to check if it was ok.

Upon closer inspection, she saw it wasn't really much of a cat at at. It looked like a hybrid between a rabbit and a cat. It was still breathing, thankfully.

"SAYAKA".

She turned to see Hitomi and Madoka running towards her. Madoka tearfully embraced her. "Oh, Sayaka, are you alright?".

"What were you thinking, running out into the road like that?" Hitomi reprimanded.

"I had to save this poor cat" Sayaka replied. "I'm sorry guys, maybe we can go to the mall tomorrow, I need to take this thing home".

"Ok, well call us if you need anything, ok?" Madoka smiled, before both girls turned and left Sayaka.

At last, she was finally home. Her parents weren't back yet so that gave her plenty of time to make a small bed for the animal. It was beginning to stir, so Sayaka filled a dish up with water and placed it on the floor.

The animals eyes finally opened, and it turned towards her. "Thank you, for saving me Sayaka Miki!".

She screamed in horror. "Did…..you just talk?".

The creature nodded. "Yes! My name is Kyubey, and you were just the girl I was looking for!".

Sayaka was lost for words. "What do you mean by that?".

"I want you to contract with me and become a magical girl!".


	2. Chapter 2 - Magical Girl Contract

Sayaka continued to stare at Kyubey in disbelief. She had a talking alien thing In her house and it just asked her to be a magical girl!

"You're serious? You think I could become a magical girl?" Sayaka asked the small creature.

"Yes! You have great potential, and depending on the wish you make, you could become an extremely powerful magical girl!".

Sayaka blinked. "A wish? You mean, I'll get a wish as well?"

"Yes, anything you're heart desires! No matter the miracle, I can make it happen! But in exchange, a Soul Gem is created. Those who receive gems are tasked with fighting witches".

Sayaka was so excited. She could wish for anything she wanted?! And gain magical powers at the same time?! _Money, Immortality, A Giant Cake! I could have everything I've ever wanted!_

One she heard the word "witches", Sayaka's excitement waned. _Witches? That sounds dangerous_.

"Are witches different from magical girls?"

"If magical girls are said to be born from positive desires like wishes, then witches are born from negative desires like curses. Magical Girls spread hope, Witches spread despair. To make matters worse, they can't be seen by ordinary humans. Doubt, suspicion, anger and hate. They bring the seeds of catastrophe to this world. A witches curse is always the culprit behind unexplained murders and suicides. They become a formless evil and eat away at humans from the inside" Kyubey explained.

"If these things are so dangerous, how come nobody else knows about them?"

"That is because witches hide themselves in labyrinths and never show themselves to humans. Humans swallowed up by the labyrinths rarely make it out alive".

Sayaka thought hard. She would love to have cool powers but it meant fighting something extremely dangerous. Besides she hadn't even thought of a wish yet. "Kyubey, are there any other magical girls in Mitakihara?".

"Why, yes actually! One of them is a girl named Mami Tomoe. She's more experienced, and is a veteran of sorts. There is also another, who is quite an irregularity. I don't ever remember contracting with her. However, I wouldn't recommend teaming with either of them. There is a certain reward for defeating a witch: A Grief Seed. Grief Seeds are pretty rare so magical girl get pretty competitive. Mami's not the type to take part in petty infighting but I'm not sure about the other girl".

She sighed. "I'll have to have more time to think about it. There's too much at stake, and I haven't even thought of a wish yet".

"That is odd. Most girls contract immediately".

At last, the next day had arrived, and Sayaka and Madoka were sitting on the rooftop of the school eating lunch. She had already taken the liberty of introducing Kyubey to Madoka, and while Madoka was slightly freaked out, she accepted Kyubey's presence.

"Madoka Kaname, you could become a magical girl too. You have a vast amount of potential, quite unlike any girl I've seen before. You just have to make a wish, and I'll make it happen!"

"Really!? I could become a magical girl with Sayaka-chan? But what should I wish for?". Madoka turned to face Sayaka, who was staring off into the distance. "Sayaka, what are you going to wish for?".

She continued to gaze off before feeling Madoka tap her on the shoulder. Turning around, she sighed and stared at her feet. "I'm still debating on what I should do. I have a vague idea on what I want to wish for, but I'm not sure which path I should take".

"Well, talk to me about it. I might be able to help".

"Well, I know my wish will have something to do with Kyousuke, but I'm not sure if I should simply wish for his love, or for his hand to be fixed".

Madoka smiled. "I would choose the second option".

"Really? He might never notice me though. I might forever be stuck as the best friend. I want something more!".

Madoka noticed a girl walking towards them, and to her surprise, it was Homura. Homura stoped a few feet away from them.

"So, you've decided to become a magical girl, have you?" She asked Madoka.

"How do you know about Magical Girls?" Sayaka demanded.

Homura flipped her hand and summoned her Soul Gem. It was a violet purple colour. "I would know because I am a magical girl".

Sayaka gritted her teeth. "So you're the irregularity Kyubey told me about, eh?".

Homura ignored Sayaka, and instead turned to face Madoka, who was hiding behind Sayaka. "Do you remember what I said to you yesterday?".

Madoka slowly nodded. "Good. I hope you remember that warning. If you try to be something you're not, you will lose everything" Homura said. She turned and started to walk away before Madoka cried out "Homura-chan! What did you wish for?".

Homura stopped just outside the door to the stairwell. With a flip of her hair, she left, leaving both girls without an answer.

"I can't believe she's a magical girl" Madoka whispered.

"I have a feeling she's going to become a pain in the neck. What was she talking about? Did you talk to her yesterday?".

"Well…yes. On the way to the nurses office, she told me to stay as I was and to not accept any offers of unlimited power".

"I believe she was referring to me" Kyubey said. "She was probably trying to prevent you from contracting with me".

The bell chimed, and Madoka was packing up the contents of her lunchbox when Hitomi suddenly walked up the stairs. "So this is where you two were hiding! I was looking for you all morning, where were you?".

Sayaka began to look sheepish. "Well….we had to discuss some things".

Hitomi glared at the two before walking back down the stairs.

"Damn, we shouldn't have done that. She probably thinks we've ditched her" Sayaka groaned.

"I'll sort it out. I want to give you time to think of you're wish!" Madoka said, racing down the stairs.

Sayaka smiled. "Thank you, Madoka".

After quickly stopping in at the mall to fetch the CD, Sayaka had made her way over to the hospital to see Kyousuke. She stepped out of the elevator and began to walk down the hallway to room 303. She stopped and took a deep breath before walking in.

"Hey Kyousuke!".

Kyousuke turned away from the window and smiled, happy that his friend was there. "Hey Sayaka-san".

"I managed to find the CD for you!" She said, handing the case over to him.

"Sayaka, you're a genius at finding rare CD's, aren't you?".

"Nah, I just get lucky" Sayaka laughed.

"This soloists interpretations are incredible. Wanna listen too Sayaka?".

"W-Well….if you don't mind, that is" Sayaka blushed, taking one earbud.

"I wish I could play it on speaker but we're in a hospital".

The track started playing and Kyousuke leaned closer to Sayaka. Sayaka continued to blush before closing her eyes. She had fond memories of Kyousuke, they first met at one of his violin recitals. They instantly clicked and became great friends. But she had a crush on him for the longest time. She wanted to confess, but whenever she tried to, she lost all courage and just changed the subject to something random.

She was snapped from her daydreaming by the click of the song ending. Kyousuke was staring out the window, tears streaming down his face. Ever since the plane crash, his hand was permanently paralysed, and his legs sterile. So he was no longer able to play the violin.

Sayaka stared down, suddenly feeling guilty. Was she inadvertently torturing him by letting him listen to the songs he used to be able to play?

An hour later, Sayaka left the hospital, feeling a bit down. _Of all the people in the world, why did it have to happen to Kyousuke? If I could use my wish to heal him, would he think bad of me? Do I really even want him to be healed, or do I just want him to be indebted to me for all eternity._

After exiting the hospital, she was met by Kyubey, whom she had left outside since pets weren't allowed in hospitals. She began the long walk to her apartment.

"Have you decided what to wish for?" Kyubey asked.

Sayaka shook her head. "I'm still debating on which side I should go to. I could either make a selfish wish, or I could use my wish on someone else. I'm not sure which to choose. One would benefit me greatly, the other I would have to do some extra work to achieve".

"Keep in mind as well, the size of your Soul Gem and the amount of power you have is equivalent to the type of wish you made. It also depends how much karmic destiny you hold".

"How much potential do I have to be a magical girl?"

"It's pretty average, if I were to give a number I would say 7.7".

Sayaka pressed the buzzer on the apartment gate. "Sayaka Miki, Apartment 107".

The door opened and both Sayaka and Kyubey entered the building. Sayaka briefly said hi to the security guards and entered the elevator. She took it up to the first level and opened the door to apartment 107. Her mother, Miharu Miki, was already there.

"Hey honey, how was school today?".

"Oh, you know, the usual. Schooly."Sayaka replied. She quickly scooted down the hall to her bedroom and closed the door.


	3. Chapter 3 - I've Made My Decision!

A few days had passed since Sayaka saved Kyubey and first learned of magical girls. Madoka, true to her word, managed to convince Hitomi they weren't talking about her. Homura was still being mysterious. Nothing serious had happened and nothing persuaded Sayaka to contract.

It was now Friday, and Sayaka was racing down the hall of the hospital, eager to Kyousuke. She finally reached the door and pushed it open. "Kyousuke, I'm-" She began to say before realizing there was nobody in the room.

Sayaka's breath slowed down to a steady rate. She didn't dare move a step, and just stood there, staring into the empty space, until one of the nurses walked on by. "Oh my, are you here to see Kamijou-kun?".

Sayaka slowly turned her head to face the young nurse, and nodded.

"I'm sorry, but his examination date was moved up so he's in the rehabilitation area right now".

Sayaka's clenched her teeth as her face darkened. "I see…thank you". She turned and walked down the hall to the elevator, where she waited. She sighed, reminiscing about the time she spent with him in the last week. _It's just bad luck. He can't control when he's examinations are._

The elevator door pinged, and Sayaka stepped inside the carriage, where an elderly grandmother and her niece were waiting. She said nothing to them, and stared down at her feet until they arrived at the ground floor.

Stepping out of the crowded lobby and into the sun, Sayaka broke off into a run. She needed to find Madoka and Kyubey, as she had some very important things to discuss with the two of them.

She kept running until she reached Madoka's house, where stopped and leant against the wall of the structure to catch her breath. She pressed the buzzer, and almost instantly, Madoka's father, Tomohisa, answered the door.

"Oh, hello, Sayaka-san! You're looking for Madoka, right?".

"Yes, sir…"

Tomohisa turned and yelled up the stairwell. "Madoka! Sayaka is here, and she needs to talk to you!".

A few minutes passed before Madoka came racing down the stairs. "Now, don't be out to late, girls".

"We won't!" Both Madoka and Sayaka said before walking down the driveway.

"So, what is it you need to talk about?" Madoka asked her friend.

"I can't explain it in detail, as we need to find Kyubey. I believe he might be at my place".

The aforementioned white creature leapt out of the trees above them and into Madoka's arms. "You called?".

"Wow, that was eerily convenient. Have you been following us all day?" Sayaka asked.

"Why yes I have, and now that I am present, the discussion may start!".

Sayaka cleared her throat before grasping Madoka's hands. "Madoka….i've decided to become a magical girl!".

Madoka gasped. "That's amazing, Sayaka-chan! So have you figured out what you want to wish for?".

"Yes, but I need your help…..would you be willing to also accept a contract…..but use your wish to heal Kyousuke? I know I'm asking a lot, and you're potentially throwing away a once in a lifetime opportunity….but I would really appreciate it if you did this for me!" Sayaka cried, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

"Sayaka-chan…"

Sayaka felt a hand brush away her tears, and she looked up to see Madoka smiling. "You're my best friend, Sayaka-chan. I will do this for you, for Kamijou-kun!".

Both girls turned to Kyubey. "We would both like to contract and become magical girls!".

Sayaka turned to face Madoka, and muttered a quick "thank you" to her before stepping forward to face Kyubey. "So what is your wish, Sayaka Miki?".

"I wish…..i wish for Kyousuke to love me, not just as a friend, but as a girlfriend!".

Kyubey's long ears began to rise, and she felt her chest tighten. A blue coloured light rose as Sayaka winced in pain. "The contract is complete. Your desire has given you awesome power, now release it! Grab hold of your destiny!" Kyubey said.

She reached out and grabbed the light, feeling it solidify in her palms. She opened up her hands to reveal a blue Soul Gem resting there.

"Sayaka-chan, do you feel any different?" Madoka asked. Sayaka shook her head slowly. "No, but I guess I won't see if the wish has worked until I see Kyousuke next".

Kyubey walked over to where Madoka was standing and nudged her leg. "Now it's your turn, Madoka Kaname! What is the wish that will bind you to a life of combat?".

"For my friend Sayaka, i wish for her beloved's hand to be healed, so he shall play the violin once more!".

Kyubey repeated the same process with Madoka, and the pink haired girl now clasped a luminous pink Soul Gem in her hands.

"Now that you are both magical girls, I must alert you to the dangers of fighting witches. Ordinary humans cannot see witches, so it is hard to find the entry points to their labyrinths. You can use your Soul Gems to track the negative energy. Some places I would recommend searching are highways or places gang fights are likely to occur, as well as bridges and other popular suicide destinations. Witches can also send off familiars who are not as strong as them, but if they eat enough humans they will transform into a witch".

"Doesn't sound too difficult. We could do it, right? Madoka and Sayaka-chan, Magical Girls of Mitakihara!" Sayaka laughed.

"Witches will also drop Grief Seeds once you defeat them, which you can use to purify you're Soul Gem, therefore restoring your magic!".

Madoka and Sayaka both looked at each other before nodding their heads. "Let's go find some witches, Madoka!".

AUTHORS NOTE: Relatively short chapter, but i wanted to save the actual witch battles until chapter 4 :P


	4. Chapter 4 - Life of a Magi

Immediately, the two girls set off to hunt witches. It was a few hours before they found anything: besides the site of an abandoned mill, both of their Soul Gem's glowed intensely. "I guess now's the time to test out our new powers" Madoka said. Both of them transformed into their magical girl outfits.

"Wow! This is so cool" Sayaka exclaimed.

"Sayaka-chan, you look amazing!"

"Naw, you're costume is way better!"

After they were finished admiring each others costumes, they opened a tear in the fabric separating the witches labyrinth from their own realm using their Soul Gems.

Entering the labyrinth was like stepping into one of your dreams if they hadn't rendered properly. The world was bizarre and strange, the walls and floors were made of luscious fabric. Little stuffed decapitated bears ran by them, frightening Madoka.

"The witch resides at the centre of the labyrinth. I do not know how far it is from here, so it may take awhile to find it. Meanwhile, you'll have to take care of those minions marching towards you" Kyubey said.

Sayaka looked up in front of her to see several rows of the decapitated bears advancing towards them with spears in their hands. Sayaka summoned her sword and leapt towards the assembly, slicing through a few of them. "Come on, Madoka! I can't take on all of them on my own!"

Madoka nodded, and summoned her bow. Using one of her magical arrows she fired a few shots into the crowd of bears, killing a few of them.

Sayaka and Madoka finished off a few more of the minions before charging on forward, ignoring the rest.

The ran until they reached a door. Sayaka kicked it open and found a relatively empty corridor lined with sewing machines. Before any of the bears could make it through, Sayaka slammed the door closed and used some of her magic to seal it shut.

Continuing down the corridor, neither girl said a word, already afraid of the danger they would face when they found the actual witch. What didn't help ease their worries is that they encountered Homura Akemi up ahead.

Protectively standing in front of Madoka, Sayaka glared at the girl. "What do you want, transfer student?".

"I want you to leave this witch to me".

"And what makes you think we'll do that? In case you haven't noticed, we are both magical girls now".

Homura's eyes softened slightly, and a look of worry passed over her face. "So you accepted the contract Madoka Kaname? You chose to ignore my warning".

Madoka looked away. "I did it for Sayaka-chan….."

Sayaka smirked. "We can do this ourselves, and we don't need help from shady magical girls such as you. Be gone". Without another word her and Madoka advanced forward, completely ignoring Homura's protests.

"You're two inexperienced! You won't be able to take this witch!" She yelled.

Sayaka waved her hand and a barrier adorned with musical notes surrounded Homura. "Just in case you were thinking of getting in our way. Don't worry, I'll let you out after we've slaughtered the witch, as long as we don't see you again after tonight".

Madoka and Sayaka came to a huge double door set, Madoka opened it and revealed the centre of the labyrinth. Dresses hung from the ceiling, along with sewing needles. In the centre of it all stood the fearsome witch: A giant multi-handed creature, with the head of a cat and large claws.

Sayaka started the attack, throwing duplicate swords at it. The witch was angered, and sent the bear familiars after them.

"Sayaka-chan, you deal with the bears! I'll try and stop the witch" Madoka commanded.

Sayaka nodded, and began to focus on the familiars in front of her. There were at least 15 of them. She began to attack each one individually, quickly finishing them off.

Meanwhile, Madoka was busy attacking the witch. She had already fire several arrows at it, and it showed no sign of weakness. "Sayaka-chan, I need your help!". She continued to shoot the witch but her arrows had no effect. The one of the large claws hit Madoka to the back of the room.

Seeing her friend in trouble, Sayaka threw a barrage of swords at the witch. "This is the end". She flew up towards the witch and with one swoop, sliced off the witches head. The body fell, and the labyrinth began to fade. In the place where witches body was, a Grief Seed was now there. Sayaka walked over and picked up the seed, and threw it to Madoka. "You can use this one. I get the next one, 'k?". She spotted Homura walking up behind them. "Hey, transfer student, just to be clear, after tonight, I don't want to see you again on our witch hunts. This is the last night we end this by talking".

Homura's expression conveyed no answer, and she left without another word. "I guess I'll take that as a yes" Sayaka said.

Both girls de-transformed and hurried home, as it was way past 8:00, and their parents would be expecting them.

At school the next day, Sayaka couldn't concentrate. She couldn't wait to get to the hospital and see if her wish worked!

After what seemed like an eternity sitting in a stuffy classroom, the bell rang and Sayaka raced to the hospital. She ignored reception and instead went straight to Kyousuke's room.

"Kyousuke!"

Kyousuke's eyes lit up. "Sayaka-san! I'm glad you're here! Something great happened! ".

"Oh, and what is that?" Sayaka asked, pretending to not know.

"You're not going to believe it – my arms healed!".

"No way. How did that happen?"

"I don't know! I just woke up this morning and I was able to move it!"

"That's great! Does that mean you're coming back to school soon?"

"Not yet. I still need to finish my leg rehabilitation, plus the doctors need to figure out why it was able to move all of a sudden".

"I see" Sayaka sighed. "At least you'll be able to play the violin again!".

"Mmmm". Kyousuke stared out the window, lost in thought.

"Hey, Kyousuke…is something wrong?" Sayaka asked, concerned.

"Sayaka-san…there's another thing I need to tell you….".

"What do you need to tell me, Kyousuke?".Her heart beat faster in her chest. _Be ready, he's going to ask you out_.

"Sayaka….we've been friends for a long time, but, you're more to me than just a friend. Sayaka…I love you, and I would like to ask you out…on a date" Kyousuke stuttered, suddenly turning his head to look her in the eyes.

"Kyousuke….yes! Of course I'd like to date you!".

Kyousuke breathed a sigh of relief. "I was worried you were going to say no. So, once I'm out of the hospital, I'll take you out on a date. Where would you like to go?"

"I would like to go shopping in the city centre, if that's ok with you" Sayaka blushed intensely.

"The city centre's great!"

Sayaka continued to stare at Kyousuke for an indefinite amount of time before her phone buzzed. She checked and saw a text from her dad telling her to get home.

"Sorry, I better go, Dad is getting agitated. We'll talk over the phone, ok?".

"Ok. Bye Sayaka-chan!".

Sayaka raced down the hallway. _Kyousuke Kamijou is my boyfriend I can't believe it this is great._

 _Thank you Madoka, and thank you Kyubey, for making this all possible_


	5. Chapter 5 - Dear Miss Mami

With one last arrow shot, the labyrinth began to disappear. Sayaka and Madoka returned to their civilian forms, and searched around for a Grief Seed.

"Aww, there's nothing. We've been fighting nothing but familiars lately" Sayaka complained.

"We can't let the familiars run wild though. If given enough time, they can evolve into a proper witch" Kyubey said.

Madoka nodded. "As long as we're helping the people of Mitakihara, I'd fight every witch and familiar, even if it meant not getting a Grief Seed".

Both girls said goodbye to each other, and headed back to their homes. Once Sayaka was inside her bedroom, she began to change into her pyjamas when her phone started ringing. Noticing it was Kyousuke, Sayaka answered it. "Hey! How's it going?".

"Good, very good! Sorry if this is a bit late for a conversation, but I have some excellent new. I've been released from the hospital!".

"Oh, Kyousuke, I don't mind that you're calling me late at night! That's great that you've been released. When will you be coming back to school?" Sayaka asked.

"A couple of days from now, on Thursday. I called so we can plan for our date. You said you wanted to go to the city centre, right?" Kyousuke said.

"Yeah! We should set it up for this weekend. Saturday, 10:00 AM?"

"Sure, the only thing is I might need to use crutches to help me get around, since I haven't used my legs properly for so long. You don't mind, do you?".

Sayaka blinked. "Why would I mind?".

"It might be a bit slow that's all".

"Kyousuke, you should stop worrying! You can't help it that you're legs are still rehabilitating after the accident".

"Cool, I'll see you on Thursday!".

"Ok, bye Kyousuke!".

Sayaka hung up and placed the phone down before sighing. _I still can't believe this is actually happening!_

After school the next day, Sayaka dragged Madoka and Hitomi to the Kuro Neko café to talk about the recent developments.

"So, I need to tell you about something pretty big, Hitomi. It's so big, that it will change the world".

Madoka laughed. "Sayaka-chan, it won't change the world…."

"Ok, well it does affect my life in a pretty big way. And I can't believe it actually happened….."

Hitomi gripped her bottle of Coke. "Sayaka-san! Please stop stalling! I need to know what is going on!".

Sayaka cleared her throat before blurting out "Kyousuke Kamijou asked me out!".

Hitomi merely stared at her for a moment before screaming. "He did? That's wonderful Sayaka-san!"

"I know, right?" Sayaka squeled.

"I'M SO HAPPY FOR YOU!"

"Guys…." Madoka whispered.

"Not now Madoka, can't you see were busy celebrating this amazing accomplishment?" Sayaka said.

"Yeah but-"

"It's wonderful, is it not? My best friend, with the love of her life! Oh I'm so happy!" Hitomi cried.

"I don't mean to interrupt, but we are in the middle of a café" Madoka whispered.

Hitomi and Sayaka opened their eyes to see many people staring at them. Hitomi awkwardly apologized and both of them sat back down, trying to hide themselves behind their menu's.

Madoka checked the time in her phone and tapped Sayaka on the shoulder. "Sayaka-chan, we should really get going".

"Really? What's the time?".

"It's 4:30".

Hitomi stood up and grabbed her bag. "It would be a good time for us to leave right now, since we have a lot of homework to complete. Goodbye!".

"See you tomorrow, Hitomi-chan!" Madoka said, waving. Turning to Sayaka, she smiled. "You really to go track down some witches?".

"Oh yeah".

An hour later, the two girls had found a witch at the hospital and were battling it. The witch was a small mousey creature with huge pink ears and pink and white robes. Both Madoka and Sayaka thought it would be an easy witch to defeat due to it's size, but they were being beaten.

Madoka jumped up to one of the high tables and shot an arrow at the witches chest, pining it to the icing coated wall. A second, bigger head snaked out of the witches mouth. The snake came close to Sayaka and tried to bite her, but she dodged it and attempted to slice the witches neck. The snake knocked her to the wall.

"Sayaka-chan!"

The snake turned it's head towards Madoka, and started to fly towards her. She screamed. _Don't let this be the end, please!_

A gunfire rang out, and the snake was knocked back. Madoka looked up to see a blonde haired magical girl floating above her surrounded with muskets. The muskets began to fire amber coloured bullets, and the witch was pounded to the ground. The girl summoned a large canon, and set it off, yelling "Tiro Finale!".

The witch screamed in agony, before dissolving into small crumbs. The labyrinth began to break disappear.

The blonde girl walked over to where Sayaka was lying and helped her up. "Who are you?" She asked weakly.

"My name is Mami Tomoe, and I'm the other magical girl who fights in Mitakihara".

"Thank you for coming to save us!" Madoka smiled.

"It's no big deal. I''m just glad to see other magical girls around these parts. It's only been me for a couple of years" Mami smiled.

She walked over and picked up the Grief Seed, and handed it to Sayaka. "Here, it was your witch after all". She began to walk off but was stopped by Sayaka, who had placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Where are you going?" Sayaka asked.

"My work here is done. I helped you defeat the witch. I'm going off to find another witch to kill myself".

"But you're way more experienced than us, don't you think we should team up or something?".

Mami turned around and blinked. "Really? I haven't had a partner in so long….do you really mean it, we can be a team?".

Madoka smiled. "Sure thing, Tomoe-san!".

"Please, just call me Mami".

"Ok then, Mami-san!".

From a few feet away, Homura Akemi observed the happy trio. Unnoticed, she began to walk away. _Madoka is a magical girl now, I can't help that, and I refuse to waste another timeline. Instead, I need to work to keep her from becoming a witch._

"Oi".

Homura turned around to see Sayaka staring at her. "Why are you here?".

"I was here to observe you two and assist you when needed" Homura said.

"Yeah, well, you did a great job of that. Madoka was almost going to get eaten by that witch. It was a good thing Mami stepped in, or she would be dead now" Sayaka smirked. She really didn't like this transfer student, and wanted her to stop following them around. _Maybe I should place a restraining order on her._

"I was going to help but them Tomoe-san saved her".

"I still don't like you though. Now that we've got another magical girl with us, we don't need anymore help. So stop showing up to our battles".

Homura glared at Sayaka. _You stupid girl, you don't know what you're getting yourself into._


	6. Chapter 6 - Mami's Magi Brigade

**_StrawberryTrapper: I'm so glad your liking the story so far!_**

 ** _Shiranai Atsune: What can I say? Being meguca is suffering. I do plan to write a nice non tragic Sayasuke fanfic, though I don't know whether I should set it in the normal timeflow or Homura's post Rebellion universe._**

 ** _Anyway, let's get on with the story!_**

After the battle with the witch Charlotte, Mami decided to take Madoka and Sayaka to her apartment to celebrate them becoming a magical girl team.

She opened the door to apartment 301, and stepped inside. "Here it is, guys!".

Sayaka and Madoka gasped. The room was so fancy and decorative. There were bright colours everywhere and the chairs were lined with velvet. A glass coffee table was placed in front of a large red sofa.

"Please make yourselves at home. I'll go put on the kettle and get some cake" Mami said.

"You have a really nice apartment, Mami-san? Do you live here alone?" Sayaka asked, staring at the room in awe.

"Yes, actually. I'll tell you the full story in a minute, I just need to prepare the tea. What flavour would you two like?".

Sayaka requested Jasmine tea, while Madoka asked for Peppermint. Mami grabbed the three tea boxes off the top of her fridge and picked a teabag from each of them. She picked up the kettle and poured the hot water into the teacups, before adding a teabag to each.

Mami placed the three cups on a silver tray along with the Strawberry Gateau and the three plates.

"Here you go, please have as much cake as you want, and I have some cookies in the cupboard as well if you want any!".

"Thank you, Mami-san!" Madoka grinned. She cut three medium sized pieces of cake and set them out on each of the plates. She then grabbed the first one and tasted it. "Oh Mami-san, this cake is delicious! Did you make it?".

Mami giggled. "Yes, I did. I love to bake".

"Thank you again for saving us back there. Madoka would be dead if you hadn't come to save her!" Sayaka said.

"Oh, no problem. I just happened to be nearby that's all. And I'm glad I stepped in because now I have two magical girl friends!" Mami beamed, sipping her tea. "What did you wish for when you contracted, Miki-san?".

Sayaka was taken aback, and sighed. "I'm not sure you would approve, Mami-san. I used my wish for something selfish".

"Well, I won't have an opinion on it unless you tell me".

"Mami-san….my wish…the thing I wished for….i wished for the love of my life, Kyousuke Kamijou, to return my feelings and become my lover".

Mami's face turned grim. "Hmm….yes…that is a selfish wish, but then again, my wish was incredibly selfish as well, even more so than yours. My only concern is that his sort of love will be un-fulfilling for you, and it won't have any substance because you wished for it".

Sayaka looked away. "That's kind of mean, Mami-san….".

"I'm sorry, Miki-san. I was only trying to look out for you. I'm sure he's going to make a great boyfriend". Turning to Madoka, she asked "And what was your wish, Kaname-san?".

"Well, Sayaka's boyfriend Kyousuke was the victim of an awful plane crash that left his left arm permanently paralyzed. He was a violin prodigy, and he would never get to play his violin again, so to help both him and Sayaka-chan, I wished for his arm to be healed" Madoka replied.

Mami nodded her head. "You two must be very good friends".

"Oh yes, we are! We have known each since kindergarten" Sayaka said.

"Mami-san, what did you wish for?" Madoka inquired.

"I was just 12 years old when Kyubey approached me. My parents and I were coming back from a trip to France when the accident happened. It was so sudden, I still don't remember most of it. One minute we were on our way back to the house, next minute the walls were smashed in and glass shattered everywhere. My parents were crushed in the debris, and died almost instantly. I was left on the torn car seat, just a few minutes away from death, when he appeared. He told me he could grant me any wish I wanted, so I wished to live on. My Soul Gem was formed, and all of the cuts and bruises on my body vanished. I had survived, but I was now alone".

Picking up the teacup and taking a quick sip from it, Mami continued to explain. "The weeks following were spent surrounded by news reporters, who were all trying to figure out how I survived such a horrific crash. I spent a few days in hospital to so the doctors could assess me for any injuries. I had to attend my parents funeral alone, as we didn't have any close relatives. I had to sit in the courthouse while the officials tried to figure out what to do with me. They eventually decided that I was to live alone. I receive a monthly payment from the government to pay the rent and bills, and I also have my parents inheritance, which has helped out an awful lot".

The room was silent for a few moments before Madoka gulped. "I'm sorry for asking".

"It's fine. It would be nice to have my parents around, and I miss them everyday, but I don't regret the wish. My current life is better than dying back in the car crash".

Long after Sayaka and Madoka left, Mami was walking in a park to get some fresh air when she heard voice in her head.

 _Mami, help!_

 _Kyubey?_

 _Mami, help me!_

Mami turned and saw Kyubey running around, being chased by Homura. The girl was trying to shoot the creature with her gun. Mami ran forward and tried to step between them but was stopped by Homura's arm.

"Nice to see you" Homura smirked sarcastically.

"What do you think you're doing to my friend?" Mami demanded.

"I'm just extracting some revenge on him".

"What has he done to you?"

"He turned Madoka Kaname into a magi, so he has to pay".

"Why do you care whether Kaname-san is a magi or not?" Mami challenged.

Homura gritted her teeth. _I can't explain it to her, she won't believe me_.

Mami strutted past Homura and picked up Kyubey. "Whatever the reason is, it ultimately doesn't matter. I don't want you going near either Madoka or Sayaka. You will have to work hard to make sure we don't run into each other again, because this is the last time we are going to end this by talking".

It was Thursday, and Kyousuke was finally back in school. He was swarmed by a mob of friends and classmates inquiring about his welfare.

"Kyousuke, it's good to have you back" Nakazawa grinned.

"I'm surprised that your arm healed so quickly" another friend of his, Aito, commented.

"Yeah, I was pretty shocked when it happened. I just fell asleep, and when I woke up, it was alright!".

"Good morning, Kyousuke!"

Kyousuke searched for the owner of the voice, and his eyes fell on Sayaka, who had sat down at her desk a couple of meters away.

"Hey, Sayaka!".

"Didn't she visit you in the hospital a lot?" Nakazawa asked his friend.

Kyousuke sighed. "Yeah, she did. She's such a good friend…..".

"You seem to be more fond of her now, Kyousuke. Did something happen while you were in the hospital?" Aito laughed.

"Well, yes actually…I started to have some feelings for her, I asked her out, and now she's my girlfriend. It turned out she was in love with me for a long time".

Nakazawa laughed, and slapped his friend on the back. "Good on you, Kyousuke! When are you gonna actually go out?".

"This Saturday, also can you not hit me? I just got out of hospital".

"Nakazawa! Stop bothering Kamijou-kun and get over here right now! I need to have a very serious discussion with you". Saotome's voice rang out.

"Yes, Sensei" Nakazawa groaned.

"Gee, sensei seems to pick on Nakazawa an awful lot" Kyousuke commented.

"Maybe his the son of that guy she's dating"

"Nah, I heard he's a bar manager. Never been married, or had children".

The bell rang, and the students sat down, ready to be addressed by their teacher. Homura walked in and before sitting in her seat at the front, scowled at Sayaka.


	7. Chapter 7 - This isn't right, is it?

The next few witch hunts had been successful, each time finding a Grief Seed. The three girls took turns using the seed: if it had enough power, then all three of them could use it. Homura hadn't shown up to the battles as of late and when she tried to talk to Madoka at school Sayaka warned her off.

It was now Saturday, and Madoka had secretly invited Homura to Kuro Neko for a serious talk.

Homura sat down at a table next to window and looked around. It seemed that Madoka hadn't arrived yet, so she figured she would look through the menu for something to drink.

She was surprised Madoka wanted to talk, or that Madoka had even approached her at all, since she was a timid girl and seemed to have been afraid of Homura. She clearly didn't know about her talk with Mami Tomoe, or else she would know that they weren't to interact with each other.

A waitress appeared to take her order. Homura requested for a cappuccino and a chocolate muffin. She didn't know how late Madoka was going to be, so she figured she better make herself comfortable.

 _How many timelines has it been now?_ She wondered. _I've been through this so many times that I can't even keep track of how many._

The waitress returned with her cappuccino but Homura took no notice of her. _This time, I will save you Madoka!_

Madoka was running down the street. _I'm so late! I hope Homura-chan is still there_. She entered the café and saw Homura waiting at the window seat. Breathing a sigh of relief, she advanced towards the girl. "I'm so sorry for being late, Homu-Homu!".

"It's fine. Now, what was it that you wanted to talk about?".

"Well, it has to do with Sayaka-chan….." Madoka trailed off.

"What about Sayaka Miki?".

"Well, I know she can be a bit rash and she's quick to start a fight, but she's a really good person! I know she hasn't treated you very nicely but it's only because she's worried about me. Sayaka-chan is a kind and courageous girl. She'll go to any length to help someone!" Madoka said.

"All are fatal flaws for a magical girl"

"How so?"

"Excessive kindness leads to weakness, reckless courage becomes inattention to detail, and there's no reward for dedication of any kind. You can't be a magical girl unless you understand that" Homura said.

"Well, I wanted to ask you….could you be friends with Sayaka-chan? It would be much safer for us all to fight together to kill the witches, right? If you could work with the both of us and Mami-san, that would be terrific!" Madoka pleaded.

Homura sighed, and took a sip of the cappuccino. "I don't want to lie, and i don't want to make any promises i can't keep. So give up on Sayaka Miki".

Madoka's eyes widened, and she looked away from her. "Why do have to be like this?".

"She shouldn't have made a contract. In all honesty, it's my fault. I should have watched you two properly, to prevent either of you from contracting. But now that I've taken responsibility, i must tell you it's a mistake i can do nothing about. It'd be like trying to bring someone back from the grave. She's become a magical girl already. There's no hope for salvation. The contract forces you to give up everything in exchange for one single desire".

"Then why do you still fight? From what you've just said it seems you've just given up on everything, including yourself. If that is indeed the case, then why bother with the endless fight?".

Homura stood up. "I continue to fight to protect the person I love. I made a promise, and i must continue to fight no matter what sin i must commit to do so. It seems I've wasted your time. I'm sorry".

Sayaka stood in front of her mirror, looking at her outfit. She was wearing a light blue revel dress with a black belt, a pair of black ballet flats and a black newsboy hat.

She sighed. _Get it together, Sayaka. It's just a date…..with your childhood friend whom you've loved for a long time now_.

She turned and left her room, and walked to the front door of the apartment. Her mother looked up briefly from her paperwork to question where Sayaka was going, to which Sayaka replied "to see my new friend". She didn't want to reveal to her parents that she was in a relationship with Kyousuke, not yet.

Sayaka exited the apartment and took the elevator downstairs to the ground floor. She saw Kyousuke waiting patiently outside. She bounded towards the automatic glass doors and hugged him. "Hello Kyousuke!".

"Hey Sayaka. You ready?" He asked.

"You bet! Let's get going!".

Kyousuke and Sayaka walked to the city center, and proceeded to go shopping. Sayaka went into a few clothing stores to try some clothes on and also went into a couple of manga shops. They eventually walked past a jewelry store when an emerald pin caught her eye.

"That necklace is so beautiful…" Sayaka marveled at the beautiful pin, which was styled after peacock feathers.

"If you want I can buy it for you" Kyousuke said.

Sayaka looked up at him. "How much money did you bring?".

"About 5,911 yen".

"Kyousuke! That's way too much! Why did you feel the need to bring that much money?" Sayaka gasped.

"I just wanted to be ready for anything" Kyousuke winked. "So do you want it?".

"Well….if you don't mind paying for it….sure!".

Kyousuke entered the store and bought the pin. Sayaka immediately pinned it to the collar of her dress. "It looks nice on you".

"Thank you, Kyousuke…." She blushed.

They stayed in the city for a few more hours before Kyousuke had to go home. "I had a lot of fun. We should do this again soon".

"Yeah, we should! See you at school tomorrow, Kyousuke!" Sayaka beamed before catching a tram back to her apartment.

Sayaka entered her room and sighed happily. "I can't believe that went so well!".

"Of course it did".

Sayaka turned and saw Kyubey lazing around on her bed.

"What do you mean?".

"Have you forgotten your wish? Kyousuke Kamijou loves you unconditionally now" Kyubey said.

Sayaka blinked. "So he would love me no matter what?".

"Yes. Even if you cheated or become a cold blooded murderer, he would still be yours. Kyousuke' s heart and body belongs to you forever now".

She felt her blood run cold. "It's all forced then? If I hadn't have made the contract, he would have never loved me?".

"Well, that I can't answer".

Her phone started to ring, so she went over to her desk and picked it up to see who was calling. "Hello, this is Sayaka Miki. Who is this?".

"Sayaka-san? It's Mami. I'm right outside you're apartment with Madoka. You want to go hunt some witches?".

Sayaka sighed. "Do we have to do it tonight? I'm feeling a bit flat".

"Well, it's just that we picked up traces of witch magic nearby, and we need to destroy it before it can harm innocent humans…".

"Alright, I'll come with you guys". She walked out of her room and into the hallway. Neither of her parents were there, as they had gone out to some fancy dinner party, so she didn't have to worry about them questioning where she was going. Reaching the door, she opened and came face to face with Mami and Madoka. With a quick nod, the group began to leave the building.

"Sayaka-chan…..did everything go ok with Kamijou-kun?" Madoka asked.

"Hm?" Sayaka mumbled, lost in thought. "Yeah, it went great. Perfectly, in fact".

"Then what's wrong, you seem a bit…..sad".

"It's nothing. Let's go find the witch".

The rest of the trip was silent. Nobody dared speak a word until Mami's Soul Gem started to pulse. "Here it is. We should transform!".

Mami was about to transform when Homura stepped out of the shadows to face her. Mami glared at the girl. "I thought I told you to stay away from us".

"I will take on this witch. Leave while you still have the chance" Homura said in her normal monotone voice.

"Not a chance. This witch is our prey, and I would rather take it down then have some shady magical girl kill it" Mami hissed.

"I can't allow you to fight this witch".

"Well, then we have a problem, don't we?". Mami smirked. "If I remember correctly, the last time we spoke I said it would be the last time it ended with talking".

Homura glared at Mami. "I don't want to fight you".

"Too bad. You're going to have to. Why don't we take this somewhere else?".

Mami lead the trio to a bridge that ran over a busy freeway. "We won't have to hold back here".

Homura summoned her Soul Gem and transformed into her magical girl form. She motioned for Mami to do the same.

"No….this shouldn't be happening…neither of them are witches! They should be working together, not fighting each other!" Madoka whimpered.

"You really think it will be that easy?" Mami said, her Soul Gem glowing brighter, about to start the transformation.

"Mami-san, I'm sorry!" Madoka cried out, racing forward. She grabbed Mami's Soul Gem out of her open palm and ran to the railing of the bridge. She reeled her arms back before throwing the gem far away, down onto the busy freeway.

Homura gasped, and a look of horror passed her face. She immediately jumped down from the bridge to try and recover the gem.

"Madoka! What the hell was that about?!" Mami yelled, walking towards her.

"But if I didn't….." Madoka started to say before Mami suddenly fainted in her arms. "Mami-san?".

Mami's eyes were blank and empty, her hands were cold and her body was limp. "That was bad, Madoka!".

Madoka looked up to see Kyubey sitting on the railing in front of her. "There must be something wrong with you, throwing your friend like that!" Kyubey said.

"Kyubey…..what are you saying?!" Madoka stammered.

Sayaka rushed over to were Madoka was standing and checked Mami's hand for a pulse. Hey eyes widened. "What's going on? She's dead!".

Madoka screamed and Mami's body fell to the ground, lifeless. "Mami-san…..is dead? No….that can't be!". She sat down and shook Mami's body. "Mami-san? Mami-san! Wake up! Say something! What's wrong? Mami-san!".

Sayaka gritted her teeth. "What the hell is going on?" She turned to Kyubey. "Hey! What's the big idea?!".

"You magical girls can only control your bodies from 100 meters away at most" Kyubey answered nonchalantly.

"What is that supposed to mean? 100 meters?! What are you talking about, Kyubey?"

"You normally walk around with them, so accidents like this rarely happen".

"What are you saying, Kyubey? Save her! Don't let Mami-san die!" Madoka begged the small animal.

Kyubey sighed and looked out on the freeway. "Madoka, that's not Mami. It's just an empty container. You just threw Mami".

Madoka froze, realizing the full implication of Kyubey's words. _The Soul Gem is more than just a transformation device, it also houses their souls?!_

"W-What?" Sayaka said, gripping her Soul Gem.

"I couldn't ask you to fight witches with the fragile body of a normal human. A magical girl's old body is nothing more than a piece of external hardware. Your actual soul is given a much safer, compact form that is capable of controlling magic more efficiently. It's part of my job, when I complete a magical girl contract. I remove your souls and change them into Soul Gems" Kyubey explained.

Sayaka marched over to the railing and grabbed Kyubey by his neck. "What the hell did you do to us? You basically turned us into zombies!" She shrieked.

"Isn't it more convenient that way? Even if your heart is torn to shreds, or you lose ever limb, if you heal the damage with magic, you'll be able to operate again right away. You're basically invincible, provided your Soul Gem doesn't break. Isn't that much more useful during a fight than a normal human body full of potential problems?".

Madoka started to sob, and cowered over Mami's body. "That's terrible….that's really awful!".

"You're all the same. You all react the same way when you're told what's going on. I don't get it. Why do humans place so much value in where their soul is located?".

Meanwhile, Homura was racing to recover the gem. She saw a yellow and orange thing lying on the road up ahead, so she stopped time briefly in order to get to it. Just as she was almost there, her shield started time again, and a truck ran over the gem, breaking it into a thousand pieces.

Homura just stopped to stare at the broken shards. "Tomoe-san….".

Her shield froze time again, and Homura stepped forward to pick up the broken gem. She ran back to the bridge were the fight was to take place and started time again. Sayaka looked up to see Homura walking towards them, holding something in her hands. "Did you find it?!".

Homura stared at her feet and grinded her teeth. "I was too late…..". She opened her hands to reveal Mami's Soul Gem, smashed beyond recognition.

Sayaka dropped Kyubey, and sunk to the ground. "Mami-san…..Mami-san is really dead…..".

Madoka continued to cry over Mami's dead body. "You guys should consider where to put the body. If you leave it in some random place, it could cause you a whole lot more trouble later" Kyubey advised.

Sayaka turned around and slapped Kyubey. "How could you?! Mami-san is dead because of you! You really think now is the time to start telling us where to dump her body?! Can't you feel anything at all, you monster!?".

"Well, as a matter of fact, I cannot feel emotion, so I cannot understand what all the fuss is about. Why do you care so much if one of your kind dies? They were only one insignificant person, there are a billion more of you. So why do you care so much?" Kyubey questioned.

"Kyubey…why must you be so horrible….." Madoka cried.

Sayaka held out her Soul Gem and transformed into her magical form. "You've said enough, monster. It's time for you to die!". She attempted to slash Kyubey but he darted out of the way and ran off into the distance. Sayaka began to chase him but was stopped by Homura. "Leave him. It's no use killing him".

"But he's the reason why Mami-san is dead! He needs to pay!" Sayaka screamed.

"Killing the creature won't solve anything. He will just regenerate" Homura sighed. She hated to see Madoka cry, but it couldn't be helped. Mami Tomoe was dead forever and there was nothing they could do about it.

Once Homura had left, Sayaka turned to Madoka. "What should we do with it?".

"What should we do with what?"

"The body. We can't just leave it here, but we have no parents to return it to".

Madoka wiped her tears away. "We should give her a proper burial. Out of respect".

"But where should we bury the body? Shouldn't be just hand her into the police, or something?" Sayaka stated.

"Well….."

"I'll figure it out. I was her student after all, so I'll be responsible for it. You just go home Madoka".


	8. Chapter 8 - Is Your Love Even Real?

**_SakuraPinkSky415: Not really. You ever played the Madoka PSP game? It has an extra route in there in which Kyousuke and Sayaka get together, no tragedies necessary. It's a pretty good game, and it's probably the only time Homura has cared about someone other than Madoka. Alas, even though everyone was happy in that route, time had to be reset anyway as Walpurgisnatch couldn't be defeated._**

Sayaka walked into her room and crashed on the bed. The day had been exhausting. It had started off great, with her finally going on a date with her beloved Kyousuke. But the revelation about the Soul Gem had messed her up, plus the death of her mentor Mami had just put her on edge even more. What made matters worse was what Kyubey had said about Kyousuke earlier.

 _Kyousuke Kamijou loves you unconditionally now_

 _Yes. Even if you cheated or become a cold blooded murderer, he would still be yours. Kyousuke' s heart and body belongs to you forever now_

She wondered about the implications of Kyubey's words. _Does this mean that it's all fake? He would have never loved me like that if it weren't for the contract?_

 _I'm not even a human being, so do I really deserve him?_

Sayaka was absent from school the next day. She didn't feel she could face Kyousuke knowing she was nothing more than a zombie pretending to be alive. Instead, she faked being sick. It was easy to convince her parents: her mum had believed her instantly, and her dad had already left for work so he couldn't assess her condition properly.

For the entire day she just stayed in bed, watching her Soul Gem glow. It had gotten a little bit muddier since last night, so Sayaka needed a Grief Seed. She quickly threw on some clothes and left the house, in search of a witch. She eventually found one by the riverside, and killed it almost instantly. She took a lot of damage to her body but she didn't care. As Kyubey had said, her physical body was nothing more than a piece of external hardware. It didn't hurt at all.

On her way back from the hunt, she ran into Hitomi, who was leaving school. Sayaka pretended not to notice her and kept on walking forward. Unfortunately, Hitomi had noticed her and was now bounding towards her calling out "Sayaka-san!".

"Oh, Hitomi! What a surprise. I didn't expect to see you here".

"Where were you today? It was just me and Madoka-san. She seemed a bit off today. In the middle of lunch she just started crying for no reason. When I asked her what's wrong, she said 'I'm glad to be alive. I'm glad to still be able to be with my friends'. Do you have any idea what that was about?"

Sayaka froze. _I can't tell her about Mami-san and the magical girls. She either won't believe me or she'll believe me and freak out._ "No idea. Why were you heading this way? Your house is on the other side of town".

"Looking for you, of course! I wanted to talk with you, and catch up, since we haven't been hanging out as much".

"Well, here's the thing Hitomi….."

"Uh-uh, you aren't getting out of this!" Hitomi laughed. "Come on, Sayaka-san, I just want to talk with you!".

"Yeah, ok. We'll walk around for a bit" Sayaka mumbled.

Both of them walked around the block, just casually talking. Then out of nowhere, Hitomi asked how things were going with Kyousuke.

"Well, it's going great! I'm really glad that he recognised how I felt….yeah".

"I'm glad for you then! I'm happy he's with someone who cares about him!".

"Why do you care?".

"Hm?"

"Why do you care who he's with anyway?".

Hitomi blushed. "I've liked him for a while now…..but I'm happy he's with you. You two deserve each other".

Sayaka stopped walking and just stared at the ground with eyes wide. Hitomi turned to see what was wrong. "Sayaka-san?".

Without warning, Sayaka began to run off. "I'm sorry Hitomi!".

"Sayaka-san!" Hitomi called out after her.

Sayaka continued to run until she was in an unfamiliar, unpopulated area. She leant against the wall of an abandoned shop and started to cry. "I'm not worthy of Kyousuke….I'm not even human, so I don't deserve his unconditional love, especially if it's forced!".

Meanwhile, Madoka was sitting in front of her TV, watching a baseball tournament. She was only half paying attention when an urgent news headline flashed on the screen.

"We interrupt this program with some breaking news. The body of Mitakihara Junior High student Mami Tomoe has been found in Takara Park. No known causes of death have been identified. More on this story at six".

Madoka gasped. _Sayaka, you didn't…_

She suddenly jumped up and grabbed her shoes. "I'm going out!".

"Ok, Madoka, be back soon".

She sped down the drive to, on her way to Sayaka's apartment complex. When she finally reached it, she buzzed in the door. "Miki-san, is Sayaka-chan there?".

"No, she's not. I thought she'd be with you?".

"No she isn't. I need to find her though!".

Madoka left the building in pursuit of her friend. _Come on, Sayaka. Where are you?_

She eventually ended up in a cul-de-sac filled with abandoned buildings. She found Sayaka lying in front of one of them.

"Sayaka-chan, are you ok?".

She began to sit up and rub her eyes. "Yeah, I think I am".

Madoka noticed her bloodshot eyes and red, damp face. "You've been crying, haven't you? What's up?".

Sayaka looked down at her hands. "I've been thinking a lot about the contract. If I hadn't wished for him to love me, would he still have if I had confessed like a normal person? Is it even real? Does Kyousuke truly love me, or is it all an illusion fabricated by my wish?". Sayaka rested her head in her hands. "I'm a terrible person….".

Madoka wrapped her arms around Sayaka and let her cry. "It's all forced! He only loves me because of my wish! I'm unworthy of him, because I'm just a zombie pretending to be alive. I can't ask him to hold me, I can't ask him to kiss me!".

She continued to cry until it seemed there was nothing left. "I'm sorry Madoka, you had to deal with that. Let's go home now".

Sayaka walked to school alone the next day. She had mostly recovered from the shock of being a soulless zombie, but Kyubey's words kept circling her head. Being so occupied in her thoughts, she almost didn't hear the footsteps sneak up behind her. "Kyousuke?".

"Hey, Sayaka.I'm surprised you aren't walking with Kaname-san and Shizuki-san today".

"Oh, well….I think they left earlier than me and are already at school" Sayaka awkwardly laughed. Kyousuke stared at his girlfriend as if she had cancer. "Is everything alright Sayaka?" He asked, concerned.

"Am I fine? Why yes I am! Totally fine, finer than fine!" Sayaka smiled.

"Really? 'Cause you've been acting sort of weird. You weren't at school yesterday".

 _I can't tell him about magical girls and Soul Gems, he'd freak out_ , Sayaka thought. _But I don't have an excuse for my weirdness_.

"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. But remember – I'm here for you, and I'd never judge you for anything".

"I guess there's one thing I wanted to talk about…"

"I'm listening".

"Have you ever wanted something so bad that you'd trade your soul for it?" Sayaka asked.

"Well, if I had been asked this back in the hospital, I would have said yes. Now that I'm back at school with my friends, I'm not so sure. I've gotten everything that I've ever wanted" Kyousuke said. "Why did you ask this? You didn't do anything crazy, did you".

A wave of regret suddenly washed over Sayaka. _You idiot, why did you say that? You've gotten Kyousuke all confused now_. "Look, I don't want to talk about it" She snapped.

"You don't have anything to be ashamed of! Just tell me what's wrong".

"I said I don't want to talk about it! Please, just drop it".

Kyousuke sighed. "If you say so, but now I'm really worried".

School dragged on forever and ever, time seemed to stand perfectly still. Sayaka spent most of the day staring at the clock, waiting for the next break. She missed the teacher calling her name to answer a problem, and was scolded for it. At lunch, she was with Hitomi and Madoka, barely eating any of her lunch. She didn't speak a single word.

Once the bell had gone, she had done her best to melt away in the crowd and get to the front door. Quickly surveying the area for teachers and other students, she grabbed her the handle and pushed the door open. The main gate was closed but there was a smaller gate beside it in case of an emergency. Sayaka walked across to it and tried the handle. It was unlocked.

Before a teacher could find her and stop her, Sayaka ran out of the school and down the limestone boulevard, and didn't stop until she was a safe distance from the school. Sighing, she found herself in an empty street with mostly closed shops. She pulled out her Soul Gem and transformed into her magical girl form. Her gem began to pulse strongly, and Sayaka found a labyrinth in the alleyway at the end of the street. It was the labyrinth of a familiar, but that didn't matter to her. The familiar was relatively weak and easy to defeat but at a heavy cost to her magic. When the work had been done, the labyrinth disintegrated to reveal Homura standing there in her civilian form.

"Why don't you seem to get it? You can't afford to be wasting that much magic on a familiar. Focus on the witches".

"Mind your own business, transfer student" Sayaka snapped. _Who does she think she is, trying to tell me what to do?!_

"Your Soul Gem is beginning to taint. You must purify it or the consequences will be disastrous" Homura said, throwing one of her spare Grief Seeds towards Sayaka. "Use this".

Sayaka merely stared at the small object before kicking it away with her foot. "I don't accept handouts. Why should I trust you anyway?" she protested, trying to search the girls face for any clues to her true thoughts.

As usual, Homura's face remained stoic and unreadable. "Don't be a fool. You are in no position to be questioning the motives of others now. Tell me, does being helped by someone else bother you that much?".

"I won't use magic for my own benefit anymore, and I don't need any rewards for my work" Sayaka proclaimed. "It wouldn't bother me as much if the person who was offering the help wasn't incredibly shady".

"You're going to die if you keep this up. Don't you have a boyfriend, the sole reason you became a magical girl?".

"So what? If I die, it just means I'm no longer able to kill witches. And then, Kyousuke will be free to find real love and not be trapped by a selfish wish".

Homura gritted her teeth. "Why are you trying to destroy yourself? I only want to help you" she asked.

"I don't trust you. You have the eyes of someone who has given up on everything. The words you speak are empty, what you're doing right now is no different. You act as if you want to save me but in reality you don't give a damn about what happens to me. You're a liar, Homura Akemi" Sayaka objected, staring into the soulless girls eyes.

Homura held up her Soul Gem and transformed into her magical girl form. "You're quite perceptive. You are right, I don't care what happens to you. You are only a nuisance on my part, and if Madoka didn't care about you, I would have gladly shot you already" she quipped.

"Madoka? This has nothing to do with her".

"No, everything is for her. The only reason I bother with you is because of her. I don't want Madoka to witness you destroying yourself. If you refuse me here you'll die either way" she said, slowly creeping towards Sayaka, who held out her sword in front of her but almost immediately found it scattered a few feet away from her. Homura was now pulling a gun from her shield and she held it up to Sayaka's forehead. "I might as well just kill you now".

Before she managed to pull the trigger, multiple beams of pink light shot through the space between both girls and exploded with light as soon as they hit the concrete walls. "Run, Sayaka-chan! Get out of here!". The light had temporarily disarmed Homura, giving Sayaka the chance to escape.

Once the light weakened, Madoka was standing right in front of Homura, aiming her bow at her head. "Madoka…..".

"You've gone too far Homura-chan…." She sobbed. "You can't just try to kill my best friend!".

"Point your bow away from me".

"No! After what you tried to do, I don't think I can trust you…" Madoka cried.

Homura's expression changed briefly, revealing her to be hurt by Madoka's words. She pulled a flash grenade out of her shield, activating it. She was gone as quick as she appeared.

Sayaka kept running until she was at the train station, where she finally transformed back into her civilian form. Thankfully, there weren't many people around and the people that were weren't paying much attention to her. She sat down on a bench and pulled out her Soul Gem. A quarter of it was tainted.

She couldn't go back home, since it was so late and she couldn't face Kyousuke after what she did to him. _I've become a manipulative bitch now….i'm no better than Homura….._

 **A/N: Sorry it took so long to update this! I've been primarily focusing on my Sailor Moon fic and i was really stuck for ideas on this chapter for quite some time. I hope to end this around about the 10th or 11th chapter, and and update frequently. Thank you all for waiting patiently!**


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